US Patent Office won't review two Novo Nordisk patents for Wegovy,
Ozempic
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[October 03, 2023]
By Blake Brittain
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Patent Office tribunal on Monday rejected
challenges to two key patents owned by Novo Nordisk covering the active
ingredient in its weight-loss and diabetes drugs Wegovy and Ozempic
brought by a generic drugmaker that is hoping to sell generic versions
of the blockbuster medications.
The office's Patent Trial and Appeal Board denied the requests by Mylan
Pharmaceuticals, which is owned by Viatris, to review the validity of
the Wegovy and Ozempic patents. Mylan had argued that the patents were
obvious based on the anti-diabetes medication liraglutide and thus
should be invalidated.
Mylan has also challenged a third patent related to a method of
treatment using the drugs. The board's decision on whether to review
that patent is due by Friday.
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A spokesperson for Novo Nordisk said the company will "vigorously
defend" its intellectual property. Representatives for Viatris did not
immediately respond to a request for comment.
Novo's Wegovy is the first to market in a new class of highly effective
weight-loss drugs. Its booming sales have led some analysts to predict
the obesity market could be worth more than $100 billion by the end of
this decade.
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![](../images/100323PIX/health24.jpg)
Flags with the Novo Nordisk logo flutter outside their Danish
company's offices in Copenhagen, Denmark, September 26, 2023.
REUTERS/Tom Little /File Photo
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Oct/03/images/ads/current/bennet_lda_010722.png) Record profits from Wegovy and type
2 diabetes drug Ozempic - which contains the same active ingredient,
semaglutide - helped Denmark-based Novo become Europe's most
valuable company in September.
Novo has filed several U.S. patent lawsuits against companies
including Pennsylvania-based Viatris that are seeking to market
generic versions of the drugs. Viatris has separately asked a West
Virginia federal court to invalidate the patents as part of the
litigation.
(Reporting by Blake Brittain in Washington; additional reporting by
Patrick Wingrove in New York; editing by Will Dunham and David
Bario)
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